Student Centric Education Design

Here are some facts for our community.

Students:

Reality 1: Students enter reading on a fifth-grade level; 

Reality 2: Students enter doing math on a sixth-grade level; 

Reality 3: Students have not been appropriately identified for special education services; 

Reality 4: Students are English Learners; 

Reality 5: Students are pregnant or have babies they need to care for; 

Reality 6: Students have to work to support their families; 

Reality 7: Students don’t decide to restart their education at the beginning of set semester calendars; 

Reality 8: Students have trouble juggling five or six classes at a time, plus probation, parenting, counseling and/or work; 

Reality 9: Students dislike the social pressure of lunch, recess and other downtime in traditional high schools; 

Reality 10: Students have to change schools a lot, losing credit for work done when they can’t finish a semester; 

Reality 11: Students are or become homeless; 

Reality 12: Students need more time; 

Reality 13: Students need a job; 

Reality 14: Students want to go to college; 

Reality 15: Students want to know how what they are studying is relevant; 

Reality 16: Students forget to or can't come to school; 

Reality 17: Students are victims and/or perpetrators of family and neighborhood violence; 

Reality 18: Life happens.  

Teachers:

Reality 1: Teachers are overwhelmed in traditional schools with oversized classes and caseloads over 100;

Reality 2: Teachers are unable to connect with every student in their classes;  

Reality 3: Teachers are secluded in their own classrooms; they feel isolated;  

Reality 4: Teachers have to pay for teaching supplies out of their own pocket;

Reality 5: Teachers have workloads requiring them to correct papers outside of their workday;

Reality 6: Teachers have no time to prepare;  

Reality 7: Teachers have challenges staying healthy;

Reality 8: Teachers are forced to teach material too advanced for students to access;

Reality 9: Teachers are not equipped to support the needs of students who are facing extreme trauma, abuse, and dislocation;  

Reality 10: Teachers cannot provide tutoring to students during the school day;  

Reality 11: Teachers are not paid to work together;  

Reality 12: Teachers want to further their education and do not have the means to do it;

Reality 13: Life happens;

Reality 14: Teachers need summer jobs;

Reality 15: Teachers are creative but not allowed to supplement the curriculum;

Reality 16: Teachers want to give students real-life experiences outside of their neighborhoods;  

Reality 17: Teachers don’t feel appreciated;

Examples regarding teacher realities: 

Reality 1: Teachers are overwhelmed in traditional schools with oversized classes and caseloads over 100;

Solution 1: Learn4Life has small group instruction, one-on-one instruction, and caseloads of about 35-40 students.

Reality 2: Teachers are unable to connect with every student in their classes;

Solution 2: Our model allows teachers to personally connect and build relationships with every student we serve.

Reality 3: Teachers are secluded in their own classrooms; they feel isolated;

Solution 3: Our Learning Centers allow for instantaneous and immediate support from our colleagues; many within arm’s reach.

Reality 4: Teachers have to pay for teaching supplies out of their own pocket;

Solution 4: Our Learning Centers are well stocked with supplies and equipment identified by the LC teachers.

Reality 5: Teachers have workloads requiring them to correct papers outside of their workday;

Solution 5: Our teachers correct work with the student providing immediate feedback during the workday.

Reality 6: Teachers have no time to prepare;

Solution 6: Our teachers have one hour of onsite preparation time for every five hours of teaching.

Reality 7: Teachers have challenges staying healthy;

Solution 17 Learning Center kitchens are stocked with healthy snacks for teachers and we pay for health insurance and days off.

Reality 8: Teachers are forced to teach material too advanced for students to access;

Solution 8: Our teachers meet the students where they are, one-on-one with tools like Read 180 to help students catch up on basic skills so they can access grade-level curricula.

Reality 9: Teachers are not equipped to support the needs of students who are facing extreme trauma, abuse, and dislocation;

Solution 9: Our teachers participate in training for trauma-informed instruction and behavioral management, as well as being supported by counselors, community resources liaisons, and student retention specialists.

Reality 10: Teachers cannot provide tutoring to students during the school day;

Solution 10: Teachers are supported by tutors who can work with students on their assignments outside of their appointments with their supervising teachers.

Reality 11: Teachers are not paid to work together;

Solution 11: Our Learning Center teachers collaborate in PLCs to identify what works together.

Reality 12: Teachers want to further their education and do not have the means to do it;

Solution 12: Learn4Life provides educational assistance reimbursement annually.

Reality 13: Life happens;

Solution 13: Learn4Life allows teachers to use vacation accruals throughout the year.

Reality 14: Teachers need summer jobs;

Solution 14: Learn4Life teachers have year-round calendars.

Reality 15: Teachers are creative but not allowed to supplement the curriculum;

Solution 15: Learn4Life pays teachers extra and provides support to develop standards-aligned lessons that meet their students' needs and are replicable across Learning Centers.

Reality 16: Teachers want to give students real-life experiences outside of their neighborhoods;

Solution 10: Learn4Life prioritizes field trips and experiential learning designed and led by teachers to expand student s’ ability to place standards-aligned curricula in context.

Reality 17: Teachers don’t feel appreciated;

Solution 17: Learn4Life provides great bonuses reinforcing the vital work they do together.

You will probably be able to find multiple solutions for each of the realities.

The matrix in the attached PDF describes how our program differs from other programs in the United States that serve similar students. We made different design choices.